Ice Age: Modern Life: A Modern Christmas
by Kenneth0
Summary: It's Christmas Eve in Icetropolis and the herd celebrates their first Christmas in the modern world. Stephen is at his grouchiest on the holidays so the herd, Nizhoni and Lucas must do everything they can to get him into the Christmas spirit. Story written by me and ninjagogirl luvs iceage21.


**ICE AGE: MODERN LIFE: A MODERN CHRISTMAS**

 **Merry Christmas, everybody! Here is my Ice Age: Modern Life Christmas story. On here, Stephen is not in the Christmas mood so Nizhoni, Lucas and the herd try to bring into the holiday spirit. Will they be able to put him in the Christmas spirit? Story written by me and ninjagogirl luvs iceage21. She helped me with this story so give her credit. Read and enjoy! And a Merry Christmas to you all!**

It's the most wonderful time of the year in Icetropolis, Tennessee. The weather is exactly as it should be. Cold and snowy. Even though the season of winter has arrived, it's always winter in the city. Today the city of Icetropolis was hustling and bustling with shoppers for the most busiest-and most greatest-holidays of them all. The day before Christmas Eve.

Familiar faces are walking down the snow covered sidewalks of the city with gift bags in their hands and arms. Nizhoni, Lucas and Stephen were finishing up some last minute Christmas shopping. They were buying gifts for the herd. Well, Nizhoni and Lucas were. Stephen was paying more attention to his phone than he was to his surroundings.

Lucas jumps up and down in excitement, "You guys have no idea how excited I am today. Christmas is on its way and I can't wait to introduce the herd to the greatest holiday of the year."

Stephen rolls his eyes, "Way to wait until the last minute to tell the mammals of the past about a phony holiday known as Christmas," he continued reading fanfiction on his phone.

Nizhoni sighs, "You know, Stephen, there's more to life than your precious technology. Look around you. The magic of Christmas is in the air. Look at all the festive traditions around us."

"There's nothing festive about this holiday."

"Well, I bet you and your parents are planning to do something special for Christmas."

"My parents are going to a party. They won't be home."

"Then come over to my place," Lucas told Stephen, "My parents won't mind an extra guest."

"I'll be too busy," Stephen told.

"You are such a downer. Oh, well. Time to go visit our premam bros and bras."

So the three teenage humans made their way over to the herd's mansion and were surprised to see the place already decorated for Christmas.

The three teenagers went up to the mansion door and Lucas rang the doorbell. Manny answered it and surprised him with a giant Santa hat on his head.

"Hey, guys!", Manny greeted, "Merry Christmas!"

"What's up, premams?", Lucas asked, "I suppose you already know what tomorrow is."

"Yep. Tomorrow's Christmas Eve."

Nizhoni walked inside along with Stephen and Lucas, "Did you guys celebrate Christmas back in the Ice Age?"

"We sure did," Ellie said, "Christmas is one of our favorite holidays."

"I can't believe you guys already know what Christmas is," Lucas said.

"We're so sorry, Lucas," Brooke said, "I hope you're not disappointed."

"Disappointed? This is awesome! I'm glad you guys know what the season of Christmas is all about. What kind of stuff did you do for your Christmas celebration?"

"I bet you guys have a wonderful tradition," Nizhoni said.

"Actually it's the same now like it used to be back then," Diego told, "Except for our first few Christmases we had a Christmas rock instead of a Christmas tree."

"Then Sid told us that the Christmas rock was too plain and boring so he created the first Christmas tree," Manny said.

"I thought it was Queen Victoria of England who created the first Christmas tree many years ago," Nizhoni said.

"Boy, do I feel stupid now," Lucas said.

"I figured you were stupid all the time," Stephen told him.

"Anyway, after I showed everyone the Christmas tree, I accidentally destroyed the Christmas rock," Sid said.

"And to this day, I still don't know how he was able to break a rock," Ellie said.

"Then the story goes on to how they met Santa Claus and all that," Shira said.

Lucas gasped, "You guys met Santa Claus?"

"Oh, I remember that," Peaches said, "My dad had said that Santa Claus wasn't real so Sid, Crash, Eddie and I went to see if he was real so I could prove my dad wrong."

"And to get me off the Naughty List," Sid said.

"But there wasn't even such thing as a Naughty List at that time," Manny said.

"It would have never existed if you hadn't of said it out loud in front of Santa," Ellie said.

"Am I supposed to believe in Santa Claus or not?", Shira asked.

"Sounds like a bunch of phoney baloney to me," Stephen said.

"You think everything's a bunch of phoney baloney," Lucas told.

"Well, I'm sure that Christmas turned out to be one of the greatest," Nizhoni said as she looks around the living room and sees the Christmas tree decorated with garland and ornaments and bigger ornaments were hanging from the ceiling. The walls were decorated with red and green ribbons. It was such a beautiful sight to behold, "The inside of the mansion is so beautiful. If I could talk the mayor into it, I'd say we should have the party here tomorrow night."

"There's a party?", Crash asked.

"Right she is, mate," Buck said, jumping off the chandelier, "I saw the mayor getting everything set up for it at city hall."

"The whole town gets together for a wonderful celebration," Nizhoni told, "I'm so excited!"

"So am I!", Lucas said, "You guys know what I want for Christmas?"

"The new Turbo Xtreme Super Snowboard 3000," Stephen said.

"How did you know?"

"You never stop talking about it."

"Well, all I want for Christmas is to celebrate peace," Nizhoni said, "And a new digital camera. I wanna be a photographer one day and I love to take pictures of everything I see."

Stephen holds out his phone like its a piece of trash, "I want a new iPhone X. This iPhone 7 is getting old," then he mumbles to himself, "I probably won't get one if I ask for it though."

"Did you say something, Stephen?", Nizhoni asked.

"No."

"Those are wonderful gifts to ask for, but don't forget that Christmas is about the season of giving," Ellie told, "Getting gifts is great and all, but giving gifts can warm the heart."

"I know that, Ellie," Nizhoni said, "My grandmother and I are going to the local orphanage in the city to deliver gifts to all the orphans."

"And I am volunteering at my church to help put on a Christmas play on the first Christmas," Lucas said, "The admission price is canned food, toys, clothes and a two dollar donation to help the needy families in the state of Tennessee," he looks at Stephen, "Yo, Stephen. You wanna help out?"

"No," Stephen said.

"Come on, Stephen. You have nothing better to do."

"Lucas, you know that all Stephen does is write fanfiction and watch rerun episodes of Bones during the holidays," Nizhoni told, "He doesn't do anything to get himself into the season of Christmas."

Stephen sighs, "Christmas isn't really an important holiday to me. I don't understand why we celebrate it and I don't care to know," he then walks out of the mansion.

Nizhoni lets her anger gets the better of her. She goes and kicks a log in the fireplace while bruising her toe in the process.

She growls in anger, "I seriously have no idea why Stephen is the way he is," she kicks another log in the fireplace, "I wish there was some way we can convince him that Christmas should be an important holiday to him."

Lucas snaps his fingers, "I think I know something that could work. You remember the Charles Dickens novel called 'A Christmas Carol' that the teachers used to read to us in school?"

Nizhoni understands and nods, "I know exactly where you're going with this."

"All we need are three little volunteers," Lucas said as he looks over at Louis and Buck.

"And I'll call Laura," Nizhoni said as she removed her phone from her purse.

That night, they put the plan into action.

That night, Nizhoni and Lucas were outside Stephen's house. Lucas' plan to help get Stephen into the Christmas spirit was to put on a production of "A Christmas Carol" so he could meet the spirits of Christmas. Laura had snuck inside through the air vents. Once she found the vent that leads into Stephen's room, she started unscrewing the bolts.

Stephen woke up from the noise. He looked up at the air vent to see it come off on his own. Thinking it was rats trying to get inside, he grabbed his baseball bat. Just before he could swing, out came Laura hanging by a string dressed as the Ghost of Christmas Past.

"Laura?", he asked.

"I am not Laura," Laura said, "I am the Ghost of Christmas Past. I am here to tell you how your past has affected your future of the beautiful season of Christmas."

Stephen set his baseball bat down on his bed, "Like you would know anything about my past."

"Of course I know. I have video evidence," Laura swings her way over to Stephen's laptop, "Take a look," she went to Stephen's photos and videos and starts showing him videos of all his past Christmases, "See how happy you are? Why can't you be that way now?"

"Listen, it's complicated. I just don't understand why we celebrate Christmas."

The window to Stephen's bedroom opens up. Entering through it was Louis dressed as the Ghost of Christmas Present.

Stephen sighed, "Louis, what are you doing?"

"Who is this Louis you speak of?", Louis asked, "I am the Ghost of Christmas Present."

"Oh, boy. What do you want?"

"I'm here to telling about all the amazing things Christmas has to offer. It's the time of year where everyone gets together and enjoys the holiday of giving and a time of peace. Plus, who wouldn't want to be surrounded by awesome decorations, delicious food and wonderful friends?"

"And why should I care?"

"Because you never know if this will be your very last Christmas."

Then swinging inside the room through the window was Buck dressed as the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come. He landed face first on the floor.

"Buck, what are you doing?", Stephen asked.

Buck stood up, "I am not Buck. I am the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come. And I am here to show you what will happen if you don't change your ways and start placing the spirit of Christmas into your heart," he points over to the window, "Take a look outside."

"Why am I staring at a rock?", Stephen asked, looking out the window, "And what are Nizhoni and Lucas doing?"

Nizhoni is fake sobbing, "Oh, Stephen! If only you understood what Christmas was all about! If only you had celebrated with us!"

"Now we can no longer celebrate Christmas without honoring you!" Lucas said.

"Don't you see, mate?", Buck asked, wrapping himself around Stephen's chest, "If you don't change your ways and start believing in the magic of Christmas, you'll die!", he starts crying.

But Stephen pries Buck off of him and throws him out the window, "Nice try, guys," he closes the window.

"Well, that didn't work," Buck said as he takes off the black robe.

"I'm all out of ideas," Lucas said, "This was the only thing I thought would work."

"So what do we do now?", Louis asked, popping up from underground along with Laura.

"Don't worry, guys," Nizhoni said, "I have a plan. Lucas, meet me at Stephen's front yard tomorrow morning."

"You got it," Lucas said.

So the two humans and three little mammals went home to prepare for tomorrow.

The next morning, which was Christmas Eve, Stephen woke up after reading fanfiction until two in the morning. After the weird little production that went on in his room last night, he couldn't go back to sleep. He would've love to go back to sleep if not for the doorbell ringing. Since his parents weren't home, which they never were in the mornings, he had no choice but to answer the door. He drowsily got out of bed, walked downstairs and opened the front door. To his surprise it was Nizhoni and Lucas. They were holding pairs of ice skates in their hands. Nizhoni had two pairs, though.

"What's going on?", Stephen asked.

"Well, Lucas and I invited the herd to go ice skating with us today over at the park," Nizhoni said.

"Okay, so why did you come over to tell me?"

"Because you're coming with us," Lucas told.

"No way! I'm not doing that!"

"Of course you are," Nizhoni said, handing Stephen the skates, "We don't want you to miss out on any of the fun Christmas festivities."

"Sounds like a pretty good idea to me," Stephen said, "Besides, I don't even know how to ice skate."

"It's a Christmas tradition," Lucas said, "We just don't want you to miss out on all the fun."

"Where's the fun in anything anymore?"

"Well, whether you like it or not, you're going," Nizhoni told Stephen, "Now get dressed and meet us out here in ten minutes. The herd's waiting for us and so is my grandmother."

Sighing, Stephen went back inside his house to change. After putting on some warm clothes, he and the others made their way over to the ice skating rink at the Icetropolis Park. The whole herd was there waiting for them. While the teenage humans were getting their skates on, Louis and Scrat decided to take a walk in the park. Just when they got on the snow covered sidewalk, they saw Laura pass by.

"Hey, guys," Laura said.

"Hey, Laura," Louis said, "What are you doing?"

"Going ice skating. Wanna join me?"

"Sure, but me and Scrat are gonna go take a walk. We'll be back in a few minutes."

"Okay," Laura said, "See you guys later."

"See you later," Louis said.

"You know, Louis, I saw the strangest thing yesterday," Scrat said, walking beside Louis up the hill, "It looked like me, but it wasn't me. Well, it was the same species as me and we had some of the same qualities and all, but we had a lot of differences to our looks. I hate to say it, but I think I've found my cousins of the future."

"Are you talking about the squirrels that live in the trees here at the park?", Louis asked.

"Exactly! And it turns out we both love nuts. I gave them that inheritance."

"Scrat, look down there," Louis said, pointing down at the ice rink.

"Where? Who at?", Scrat asked, "All I see is the herd skating on the ice."

"Look at Laura," they both look at Laura who was skating beautifully on the ice. Louis waved at her, "Hey, Laura! You're really an amaz-", before he could finish, he started running down the snowy hill uncontrollably.

Louis' running turned into a slide down the hill. Scrat chased after him. Louis made it to the ice, but now he was sliding on his belly. Scrat was sliding on the ice on all fours since he was trying to run. They became uncontrollable to stop slipping and sliding causing Laura to move over and let them pass. They kept going until they smacked face first into a pile of snow.

The three teenage humans and Kimi stared at the two little mammals as Nizhoni and Lucas were putting their skates on.

"That is why you should always be careful out on the ice," Kimi said, "Now be careful and don't go anywhere near the caution tape. That's where the thin part of the ice is. But don't forget to have fun."

"We will," Nizhoni said, "Are you coming, Stephen?"

"No, because I don't know how to ice skate," Stephen said.

"Lucas said you knew how. He said you guys used to play ice hockey a lot."

"Ugh! Lucas, why did you blab on me?"

"What's your problem, dude?", Lucas asked.

"Nothing. I just don't know how to ice skate like Nizhoni."

"It's like riding a bicycle," Nizhoni said, "You won't learn how to do it overnight."

"Why should I bother to start learning now?", Stephen asked.

Nizhoni pulls him off the bench, "Come on. Let's just take a few laps around the ice. I'm sure it won't be that bad," she gets out on the ice and starts skating.

Stephen places himself on the ice. He tries skating, but it's hard to do. He and Lucas haven't played ice hockey since they were eight and after all that time he forgot how to skate on the ice. After trying to skate a few steps forward, he either knocked himself down or held onto the bench.

Nizhoni was over with the herd when she noticed Stephen was having trouble. She skated over to him to lend a hand.

"Go away, Nizhoni," Stephen groaned, "I don't need your help."

"Yeah, I refuse to believe that," Nizhoni said as she grabs his hand and pulls him up, "It's like I told you. Learning to ice skate is like learning to ride a bike. That's something we both can do. So give me this chance to help you get back into the ice skating groove."

"Like that's gonna work."

"Trust me. I know it will. Just take my hand and we'll skate together."

The two of them started skating together. Stephen had a difficult time on the first lap, but after the second and third lap he started regaining his balance on the ice. Then after a couple of more laps he let go of Nizhoni's hand and went out on his own. He skated so fast that he flew by the whole herd. While he did so, he was smiling and doing something he hasn't done in a while. He was having the time of his life.

"Hey, guys! What's up?", Stephen said as he passed by the herd.

"Was that Stephen?", Ellie asked, bewildered.

"I think so," Shira said.

"Is he actually enjoying himself?", Manny asked.

"Whoo hoo!", Nizhoni cheered, "All right, Stephen! Way to go!"

"That girl has a big heart," Ellie said.

Stephen continues to have fun, "Nizhoni, you were right! This is awesome! You're awesome!"

"Really?", Nizhoni asked. Then she gasped, "Stephen, stop!"

"Stop? What for? I'm having the time of my-", Stephen skated past the caution area and fell through the ice.

Stephen was quick, though. He climbed out of the hole and crawled onto solid ice. Nizhoni and the rest of the herd ran over to him.

"Stephen, are you okay?", Nizhoni asked as she helped Stephen up.

Stephen coughs, "Yeah, I'm peachy keen. Soaked to the bone when it's cold makes me feel so much better."

"Well, you don't have to be sarcastic," Sid said.

Stephen groaned, "This was stupid from the beginning."

"I'm so sorry, Stephen," Nizhoni said, "I was trying to help you have fun."

"Whatever. I have some extra clothes in my backpack. I'll go change in the restroom at the general store across the street from here. Be right back," Stephen skates away from the herd and made it to the snowy grounds.

Nizhoni crossed her arms, "Looks like another plan flunked."

"I guess I should've told you he hasn't played ice hockey since he was eight," Lucas said.

"I thought helping Stephen try something new would put him in the Christmas spirit. I guess all I did was make things worse."

"Well, it was sweet how you were able to make him happy even if it was only for two minutes," Ellie said.

"I hate to admit it, but I think Stephen probably hates the holidays," Diego said.

Shira smacks her husband on the back of the head, "Nobody's hating the holidays on my watch."

"Well, no need to worry because I have another idea in mind," Lucas said, "Nizhoni, you will be the bait."

"For what?", Nizhoni asked, looking nervous.

"We need to get you alone with Stephen."

"You seriously wanna make things worse than they already are?"

"Just hear me out. If the two of you are alone, he might be able to slip out the reason why he's so down in the dumps on Christmas. He seems to tell you anything as long as the rest of us aren't around."

"I'm not so sure about this."

"This may be your only chance to figure out what he wants for Christmas."

"I already got him a new tablet for Christmas. What else could he possibly want?"

"There you go. What else could he want?"

Nizhoni gave it some thought and nods, "Okay, I'm in. Let me just text him and ask if he wants to go out for dessert with me," she takes out her phone and sends Stephen a text. She waits a moment and finally gets one back from him. She smiles, "He's going for it. I just hope this plan works."

"Any plan is better than no plan," Lucas said.

An hour later, Nizhoni and Stephen are sitting inside the Ice Pop Cake Shop. Outside, Crash and Eddie are peeking through the window to observe what's going on. The two teenagers are enjoying some warm fruitcake and gingerbread cookies with steaming mugs of hot chocolate. Neither of them were saying anything at first since Stephen was staring at his phone. Tired of the silence, Nizhoni decided to start up the conversation.

She cleared her throat, "Stephen, have I ever told you how nice your hair looks?"

Stephen shrugged, "I haven't done anything new to it," he was too busy reading fanfiction to engage in any conversation.

Nizhoni sighs and walks over to Stephen's side of the table, "I'll take that, "she snatches his phone from his hands and sticks it into her purse, "I hope we won't have any more interruptions."

"Well, I'm paying attention now that you took my phone away."

"I asked you to hang out and hanging out does not mean your eyes should be glued to a screen the entire time."

"I stay on my phone at every meal no matter what."

"Why don't we talk about Christmas topics? Tell me, Stephen. What's your favorite part about Christmas?"

"My favorite part? How could I possibly have a favorite part? All I ever get for Christmas is clothes. I'm lucky to get a new phone and laptop every year."

"Well, Christmas isn't about getting gifts. It's about being with those that love you."

"Tell that to my parents. I'm lucky to spend Christmas morning with them. We all open our gifts, then my mom makes french toast for breakfast, then my dad takes a shower, then they get dressed up and they spend the rest of the day going to a Christmas party for their business."

"Is it mandatory?"

"Yes, but I don't mind. I have better things I can do with my time," Stephen finished up the rest of his fruitcake, "I better start heading home. I need to warm up before tonight."

Nizhoni didn't hear him at that point since she was lost in her own thoughts. She had pity on Stephen. She understands that his parents have to work and attend mandatory get togethers, but that doesn't mean he has to spend Christmas all alone. She was snapped out of her thoughts by Stephen's snapping of his fingers.

"Nizhoni! Can you get out of the spirit world for five seconds?", Stephen asked, "I need my phone back."

"Wait a minute," Nizhoni said, "There's something I wanna ask you."

Stephen groaned, "What?"

Nizhoni sighs, "Out of anything in the entire world, what have you always wanted for Christmas?"

"Why is that important?"

"Tell me or I won't give you back your phone."

Stephen rolled his eyes, "Alright, fine. There has been one thing I've wanted. I probably won't get it, but to find out if the fat jolly St. Nick was real," he takes his phone back from Nizhoni, "See you later," he walks out the door.

Nizhoni became lost in her thoughts again. An idea came to her. All she really wanted for Christmas was to make Stephen happy. She would get Stephen the gift he's always wanted to prove to him that Santa was real so he could believe in the magic of Christmas.

Nizhoni went outside and motioned for the herd to follow her back to the mansion where she explained what happened during the time she spent with Stephen and the idea that she thought of.

"Stephen told me that all he's ever wanted for Christmas was to meet Santa Claus. The problem is, even though you say he's real, I'm not sure he is."

"He is real," Sid said, "We've all met him."

"Not all of us have, Sid," Brooke told him.

"Can't say if he's real or not," Shira said, "I've never met him."

"Well, he's as real as the sun and the moon," Manny said, "I'd like to see Stephen get the gift he's always wanted so he can have some holiday joy in him for once, but how are we gonna get Santa to come and stop here?"

"Well, here in the future, the best way to get in contact with him is by writing a letter," Nizhoni said.

"Back in the Ice Age, we just walked to the North Pole," Peaches said, "We didn't live too far from there."

"It would take forever to do both and it's already Christmas Eve. What are we gonna do?"

"Sweetheart, I know you wanna help Stephen and show him what the holidays are all about, but maybe there's something that he's not telling us," Ellie said, "There's more than meets the eye when it comes to people and animals feeling gloomy over the holidays."

"Well, I'm tired of seeing Stephen stare at his phone and hiding his feelings," Nizhoni said, "I wanna see him look up and place a smile on his face when he sees the gift that he's always wanted. The question is how we're going to bring Santa here."

The doorbell rang. Nizhoni answered it to see Lucas.

Lucas waved, "What's up, premams? Just came over to remind you all that the Christmas party's tonight. You all still planning to go?"

"You know it!", Crash said.

"Wouldn't miss it for the world!", Eddie said.

"The Christmas party?", Nizhoni asked, "Is Stephen gonna be there?"

"Yeah, he texted me saying he would be there at six," Lucas said, "Why do you ask?"

"I think I know why," Manny said, "Nizhoni, the plan will work."

"What plan?", Lucas asked.

"What are you talking about, Manny?", Nizhoni asked.

"I have an idea for how Stephen can get the birthday present he's always wanted. If we can't bring Santa here, then Santa will just have to come to us."

"I think I know what you're planning to do."

"Okay, here's the plan," Manny said as everyone huddled.

So the herd spent the rest of the day planning out how they would bring Santa to Icetropolis.

That night everyone in Icetropolis was at the Christmas party. They were all having a great time. The Trunks, Tigers, Sloths and the rest of the herd's future friends were there. Even Dr. Morris showed and he normally doesn't show up to get togethers in the city. People and animals were exchanging gifts. The herd's future friends were exchanging gifts to one another as well.

"Hope you enjoy your new coffee maker, Peter," Richard said.

"Now I can make coffee faster than before," Peter said, "I'll also have more energy for work."

"I hope you can get more energy at home, too," Angela said, "By the way, thanks for the new yoga outfit, Lucille. It really matches my eye color."

"Oh, anytime," Lucille said, "And thanks for the new baking utensils. I've been needing some new ones for a while."

"Thanks so much for the new romance book series, Angela," Tammy said, "Money Love is truly a bestselling read."

"You and your books, Tammy," Coach Tony said, "And I do wanna thank you for the new gym mats."

"I ended up getting so many extras that I couldn't fit them all in my gym," Angela said, "I figured you could use them."

"My football players could definitely use them."

Over by the Christmas tree, Melody and Jessica were exchanging gifts.

"Oh, my gosh," Melody said, "This dress is so me. How did you know I wanted this?"

"Best friends know their best friends," Jessica said, "And I really love the necklace you got me. It really matches my eyes. Do you think Rob would like it?"

"That's actually one of the reasons I got it for you. Maybe when Rob will finally ask you out, you can wear it for your first date."

"Speaking of Rob, he's on his way over here."

Rob waved at the female elephants, "Hey, girls. Merry Christmas."

"Merry Christmas!", Melody and Jessica said.

"Hey, have either of you seen Julian? He said he would be here with Peaches."

"Neither of us have seen them," Melody said.

"But I'm sure they're on their way," Jessica said.

"Cool," Rob said, "You girls want me to get you some hot chocolate while we wait?"

"Yummy!", the two elephant girls said.

Coming in from the park was Stephen with Kimi walking behind him. Kimi was enjoying the festivities, but Stephen was too busy writing a new fanfiction chapter on his phone. He didn't even look up at the podium where Mayor Frozen was about to give an important speech.

Mayor Frozen cleared his throat, "Good evening, everyone. Merry Christmas! I would like to thank everyone here in our fair city of Icetropolis for attending the yearly Christmas party."

While the mayor was giving his speech, the herd was preparing for their plan to be put into action. Crash and Eddie had gotten in touch with Jenny and Betty to help them build the greatest catapult in history. To make sure nobody was watching them, Nizhoni, Lucas and the dino birds were keeping watch. Buck was in the trees keeping a lookout for Santa's sleigh. Everyone else surrounded the catapult.

"See anything yet, Buck?", Manny asked, looking up at the trees.

Buck sticks his head through the tree branches, "Not yet, mate, but the first jingle bells that I hear will let me tell you. The code name is jingle bells."

"Got it, Buck," Manny looks at the possums, "How's it going, guys?"

"Everything's ready," Jenny said.

"Every tiny little detail of this catapult has been checked off the list twice," Betty said, "Everything's in order."

"This is gonna be awesome!", Crash said.

"I know!", Eddie said, "It's been so long since you've been the catapult target."

"This is gonna be the greatest action for Christmas in the history of the holidays!"

"Have you guys ever done this before?", Laura asked.

"Are you kidding?", Crash asked as he jumps in the catapult seat, "I used to be one."

"Okay, guys," Manny said, "Start preparing the catapult."

"You got it!", Jenny and Betty said as they started getting the catapult ready.

"This is so exciting!", Crash said as he laughs.

Buck continues looking up at the sky with his binoculars. He heard something in the distance. The sounds of jingle bells. He looked to his right and he saw jolly old Santa Claus flying in his sleigh with his eight tiny reindeer. Buck scrambles out of the tree landing face first on the snow blanketed ground.

"Jingle bells! Jingle bells!", Buck said.

"Jingle all the way!", Jenny and Betty sanged.

"That's the signal!", Manny said, "Santa's on his way!"

"This is our only chance, guys," Nizhoni said, "Good luck."

"Ready, Crash?", Jenny asked.

"You bet!", Crash said, "Fire!"

Crash was launched from the catapult and into the sky. Everyone was hoping Crash would at least land in the passenger's seat of Santa's sleigh. That failed quickly. Santa was looking in his rearview mirror and noticed Crash coming right at him. Crash ended up hitting the sleigh's engine. The reindeer couldn't hold the sleigh up without the magic from the engine. They ended up literally falling from the sky.

Back at the party, Billy Trunks was munching on a Christmas cookie when he heard something above him. He looked up to see an object that was a red color. Having no idea that it was Santa's sleigh, he thought it was a meteor.

Billy pointed up at the sky, "Look, guys! There's a meteor falling from the sky."

"Meteors can't fall into this part of the world," Susie said.

"Yeah, it's too cold here," Matt said.

"Scientifically speaking, meteors tend to land under any weather condition on Earth," Danny said, "Even a common brain can understand that."

"You guys gotta believe me!", Billy said.

That's when Santa's sleigh landed on the city's fountain. Snow and dust gathered around in the process. Once everyone's vision cleared up, the whole town gasped when they saw Santa Claus. They also saw Crash hanging onto the tassel of Santa's sack of presents.

Santa climbed out of his sleigh, "Well, that was an act of failing Christmas magic right there. Dasher, Dancer, Prancer, Vixen, Comet, Cupid, Donner and Blitzen! Are you all okay?"

"Yes, Santa!", the reindeer all said.

"We are all clear of injuries!", Prancer said.

"Thanks, Prancer," Santa said.

"I can't believe this!", Mayor Frozen said, "Our city's fountain is destroyed! It took twenty years and two mayors just to build that."

"Hey, your fountain isn't that important. Look at my sleigh! How am I going to deliver my presents now?"

"This is incredible!", Dr. Morris said, "For years I have been waiting for this moment to meet the fairy tale legend that is actually real. I must know everything! How do you make your reindeer fly? How are they able to carry this sleigh through the sky? How can you fit through chimneys due to your excessive weight?"

"I'm not fat," Santa told, "It's this suit. It looks poofy."

All the children pushed Dr. Morris out of the way and started cheering. They couldn't believe they were actually meeting the real Santa. Billy even took a photo of Santa with his new camera. Stephen stood next to the Christmas tree in shock. The real Santa was standing there before his very eyes.

The herd, Nizhoni and Lucas ran back to city hall along with Laura and the possum sisters. They were worried that Santa was hurt, but when they got there, they were relieved that Santa and his reindeer were okay. But his sleigh took a turn for the worst. Santa gave the herd a stern look.

"I had a feeling you guys were planning this whole thing," Santa said, "This is the second time you all destroyed my sleigh."

"Well, I'm sure you remember that it was my fault for what happened last time, but this time it wasn't my fault," Sid told him, while chuckling nervously.

Diego knocked Sid in the head, "Shut up, Sid."

"Santa, don't blame the herd for this," Nizhoni told, "It was my idea. I just wanted to give my friend Stephen the Christmas present he's always wanted so that I could finally make him happy."

"Listen, I don't care who caused this mess," Santa said, "I know good and well that you all caused this mess to happen. You have once again ruined Christmas and this time I'm not playing games. You're all being placed on my Naughty List," he magically places each of the herd members' names including Nizhoni, Lucas, Laura, Jenny and Betty, "Oh, and Manfred, I really do thank you for the whole Naughty List idea."

"Did you really have to say that out loud?", Manny asked.

Nizhoni looked at the list and spotted some red ink at the bottom, "Santa, may I ask what is written at the bottom of your Naughty List in red?"

"Why, of course," Santa said, "I figured one day you would all know and I'm happy to share it with you. On the bottom of this list is a section called the Permanent Naughty List. It's made for those who have never been good and will never change their ways. So far there's only one name under this part of the bad list and I suppose you all know who this kid is."

When Santa revealed the name, everyone gasped. Even Stephen gasped and dropped his phone on the snow covered ground. The only name listed under the Permanent Naughty List was…

….Stephen….

Everyone was shocked to find out that Stephen was on the Permanent Naughty List. Stephen was shocked himself. What could he have done wrong? He was about to find out as he pushed his way through the crowd to stand in front of Santa.

"Okay, first of all, it's wonderful to meet you, Kris Kringle," Stephen said, "Second of all, why in the world would I be on the Permanent Naughty List? I've never done anything wrong."

"That's the reason," Santa told him, "You've never done anything wrong because you don't do anything."

"What?!"

"I'll give you three reasonable facts. You don't care about anybody but yourself, you keep yourself separated from society and you don't believe in the magic of Christmas."

"How do you know anything about me?"

"I have a computer. I can see everything."

"I thought you had a crystal ball," Brooke said.

"I got rid of that ten years ago," Santa said.

"Well, I hope you're happy," Stephen said, "This has been the worst Christmas I've ever had. In fact, Christmas is nothing but a phony holiday!", everyone gasped, "That's right! It's time everybody knew!"

"Well maybe if you just tell somebody what your problem is, we might be able to help you!", Nizhoni told.

"Would you just stay out of this, Nizhoni?", Stephen snapped, "For once, I wish you would just stay out of my life!", he paused as he listened to what he just said. He sighs, "I'm sorry. I didn't mean any of that."

Nizhoni is on the verge of tears, "What is your problem, Stephen? All I've been trying to do was get you into the spirit of Christmas and you have done nothing but try to keep yourself out of it."

"Nobody can get me into the Christmas spirit, Nizhoni. Christmas was ruined for me as a kid," Stephen turned around and for the first time in his teenage life, he started shedding tears of sadness.

Nizhoni walked over to him, "Stephen?"

Stephen hides his eyes under his bangs to keep Nizhoni from seeing him cry, "I've never cared about Christmas because ever since I was a kid, all my parents ever got me were clothes. They never got me anything that showed me how much they cared about me. They hardly ever spent time with me around the holidays. They always dropped me off at my grandparents house. That's where my happiness set in. My grandparents always had a tree surrounded with gifts every year. Just for me. I was their only grandchild and they wanted to make me happy. I always got really cool toys and candy and a bunch of other awesome stuff. My grandparents always had a real Christmas celebration. I never had a real Christmas with my parents. My grandparents showed me what Christmas was really about. I never wanted it to end," he paused to let more tears fall, "But it did."

"Stephen, what happened?", Nizhoni asked.

Stephen moved his bangs from his eyes to finally express his emotions, "I lost my grandparents when I was twelve. They got caught up in a house fire and didn't get out in time. I thought I could go on without them and celebrate Christmas on my own. Make up my own traditions. I even begged my parents last year to stay with me during the holidays. That was the year I found out that they left on the night of Christmas Eve so they could go out on vacation and spend the holidays with each other. They said they didn't have time to waste the holidays on children anymore. I realized at that point they never cared about me at all. I stopped caring about the holidays and pretty much everything else. I distance myself away from everyone because whenever I try to care about anyone or anything, I end up losing them and everything. And now you all know the tragic backstory of how I became an emo and keep myself alone and away from everyone. So I deserve to be on the Permanent Naughty List."

Nizhoni couldn't keep the tears in any longer and started crying. She knew Stephen pretty well, but she didn't know him that well. And hearing that story caused her to have more pity on Stephen than ever before. Even Santa started crying. Just hearing that story upsets him more than missing a house on Christmas Eve. He walked over to Stephen and placed a hand on the teenager's shoulder.

"I know I shouldn't be upset for hearing about this because I've seen how things have been for you," Santa said, "That's why I sent the presents over to your grandparents house every year because they knew what the true meaning of Christmas was."

"Wait," Stephen said, "You sent the presents to their house? Then how am I on the Permanent Naughty List?"

"I didn't put you on there until last year. Before that, I had pity on you because of the way your parents are. Then after they left you alone on Christmas Eve, you pretty much separated yourself from everyone. That's when I realized that all you cared about was getting presents on Christmas, but gifts isn't what the holidays are all about. It's about being with people that really cared about you and if you just open your heart, you'll care for them, too."

"I guess I never thought about it that way. Thanks, Santa."

"Tell you what, Stephen. I'll give you another chance. There is a way you can get off the Permanent Naughty List."

"How?"

"You have to do something nice that can beat anything anyone else has ever done on the nice list."

Stephen looks around and sees Santa's demolished sleigh and the city's fountain, "I have an idea," he whispers the plan into Santa's ear.

Santa nodded, "Okay, I'm in," he walks over to the mayor's podium, "Excuse me, Robert. Mind if I take over?"

"Oh, yes, of course," Mayor Frozen said, "Everyone, I would like to welcome our surprise guest, Santa Claus."

Santa cleared his throat, "Good evening, Icetropolis. Merry Christmas! I would like to get everyone in the Christmas spirit by singing one of my favorite Christmas songs."

Santa had everyone get together as they sang the song "Santa Claus is Comin' to Town."

Everyone in the city is singing the song.

"You better watch out,

You better not cry,

Better not pout,

I'm telling you why,

Santa Claus is coming to town."

While Santa had everyone facing him, Stephen took the time to use his warlock skills to repair the sleigh and the city's fountain. It took a minute or two to get the pieces back together, but both were fixed. And just in time, too. Everyone was finishing up the song.

"...Santa Claus is coming to town."

After taking a few seconds to cheer, Santa gasped and pointed out something behind everyone. The whole city gasped when they saw Santa's sleigh and the city's fountain repaired.

"Wow!", Santa said, "This is amazing! My sleigh is fixed!"

"The city's fountain is fixed!", Mayor Frozen said, "Kelly, cross the broken fountain off the list!"

Santa places a hand on Stephen's shoulder, "Thank you, Stephen. This is truly the nicest deed you've ever done."

"How was he able to do it that fast?", Manny asked.

"It doesn't matter," Nizhoni said, "Stephen saved Christmas."

"He certainly did," Santa said, "And he also did something good for his community. Which means he's no longer on the Permanent Naughty List," he removes Stephen's name off the Permanent Naughty List and places it at the top of his nice Nice List.

"What about the rest of us?", Sid asked.

Santa shrugged, "Why not? I'm in a good mood, after all," he places all the herd members, including Nizhoni, Lucas, Laura, Jenny and Betty, back on the Nice List.

"Thank you so much, Santa," Nizhoni said, "All I really wanted for Christmas was to make him happy and I did."

"I'm proud of you, Nizhoni," Santa said, "Of all the people that would go to great lengths to help out a friend, you are definitely the best."

Billy ran up to Santa with all the other kids, "Santa, can you stay for the party?"

"Please, Santa!", Sophie said.

"I still have a various amount of questions to ask," Danny said.

Santa laughed, "I wish I could, kids, but I have to get back to delivering presents to all the good boys and girls."

"Awww!", all the children said.

"I know, but don't forget one thing. If you continue doing good things and help those in need and continue keeping the Christmas spirit, you all will remain on the Nice List for many years to come."

"Hooray!"

Santa climbed back into his sleigh, "Okay, everyone, I gotta go. I still have presents to deliver."

"Thanks for everything, Santa!", Manny said.

"And have a very Merry Christmas!", Sid said.

"And I'm sorry for not believing in you until now," Shira said.

"All is forgiven," Santa said as he slings his harness at the reindeer, "Now, Dasher! Now, Dancer! Now, Prancer and Vixen! On, Comet! On, Cupid! On, Donner and Blitzen! Merry Christmas, Icetropolis!"

Mayor Frozen walked up to his podium, "I do declare that this is the best Christmas this city has ever had!"

"You said it!", Stephen said.

"But the night's not over yet," Manny said, "Let's celebrate!"

The night ends with the whole city having a great Christmas. Stephen even places some mistletoe under him and Nizhoni and kisses her cheek. Lucas even got a secret photo of it. And the whole city gathers around the Christmas tree to sing.

"We wish you a Merry Christmas,

We wish you a Merry Christmas,

We wish you a Merry Christmas,

And a Happy New Year!"

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

 **The End.**

 **Voice cast:**

 **Manny - Ray Romano**

 **Sid - John Leguizamo**

 **Diego - Denis Leary**

 **Ellie - Queen Latifah**

 **Brooke - Jessie J**

 **Shira - Jennifer Lopez**

 **Scrat - Chris Wedge**

 **Louis - Josh Gad**

 **Peaches - Keke Palmer**

 **Crash - Seann-William Scott**

 **Eddie - Josh Peck**

 **Buck - Simon Pegg**

 **Nizhoni - Michelle St. John**

 **Stephen - Seth Green**

 **Lucas - Greg Cipes**

 **Kimi - Linda Hunt**

 **Laura - Miranda Cosgrove**

 **Jenny - Jennette McCurdy**

 **Betty - Daniella Monet**

 **Richard - Sean Murray**

 **Lucille - Kelly Metzger**

 **Peter - Stephen Stanton**

 **Angela - Katey Sagal**

 **Coach Tony - Mark Harmon**

 **Tammy - Kathleen Barr**

 **Billy - Madyx Whiteway**

 **Susie - Isabella Crovetti**

 **Danny - Iain Armitage**

 **Matt - Zachary Arthur**

 **Sophie - Olivia Edward**

 **Rob - Jason Griffith**

 **Melody - Tori Kelly**

 **Jessica - Scarlett Johansson**

 **Dr. Morris - Lin-Manuel Miranda**

 **Santa Claus - Billy Gardell**

 **Prancer - T.J. Miller**

 **That's it. I hope you like my, actually our, Christmas story. The reason I say ours is because ninjagogirl luvs iceage21 helped me out with this story so give her thanks. Credit goes all to her. Merry Christmas, everyone!**


End file.
